Wednesday, September 16, 2015

5 Non-essential kitchen items that are essential to me

This is just a little list I’ve put together of my most loved kitchen tools. None of them are really needed in the kitchen, you could do without them, but I use these so often that if any stopped working, broke or went missing, I would definitely replace them asap.

Silicone Spoon:

I purchased one of Silicone Spoons from Stevens ages ago, and now have a few in different colours. They are awesome for mixing as they scrape down the sides of the bowl really well and if you are making something like fudge, the mix doesn’t stick to it. We use these all the time for general cooking too.

Kitchen Aid:

Back when I first started getting quite into baking I treated myself to a Kitchen Aid, which I put on lay-by as I had only just started working. It felt like it took absolutely ages to pay off and finally take it home. But, I love it. Stand mixers make baking a breeze – chuck everything in the bowl and it mixes it for you. Clean up is easy too. Simon loves using the Kitchen Aid to make pizza dough too. I got mine in black to match our toaster and jug and the colour works well in most kitchens, but there are so many gorgeous colours available.

20 cm Square Cake Tin:

I have a 20cm square cake tin, with a removable base which I don’t ever make cakes in. But, I use it for all my slices and when I make fudge. I love using it instead of an actual slice tin as the removable base makes food easy to get out of the tin. Also, I like that it has taller sides – I don’t need to guess a tin size when I am experimenting with a new recipe as I know the mix isn’t not going to spill over the sides.

SodaStream:

Simon and I were given our SodaStream machine as an engagement present and it has been the best gift! We love it when guest come over and want to try it, and can choose what flavour they want. I’ve also used it to make up some lemonade to make Lemonade Scones with. I also like being able to have sparkling water on hand when I want something refreshing to drink.

Jamie Oliver Frying Pan:

So, yeah, I think every kitchen needs a frying pan which means this item might be a bit of a cheat. However, I’ve included it as Simon and I used to always buy cheap frying pans. One day when we were in Briscoes and they had a sale on frying pans (haha, a sale, at Briscoes?) and we decided to bite the bullet and get a fancy Jamie Oliver one. There was much debate about whether to buy it or not as we could have picked up about ten cheap ones for the same price. I’m glad we did though – it is still going strong, is still non-stick and it has a nice heavy base so it doesn’t buckle on the elements.

What are your favourite kitchen tools to use? What would you rush out to replace, even though it probably isn’t a necessity?

4 comments:

Definitely with you on the quality frypan! We were the same, working on a regular rotation of cheap crappy frypans until we spied a really good sale and thought it was worth a try.

My silicon spatula (which is unfortunately looking close to end of life) is probably my most essential utensil. Oh, and my stick blender's little processor attachment - so useful for pulverising just about anything. :-D

I've been meaning to do one of these posts myself for a long time, so I'll piggy back on yours.1. Kenwood stand mixer. I'd only ever upgrade it to a gruntier model or a KitchenAid.2. Digital/electronic scales.3. Three tier stackable cooling racks. I thought these were a gimmick at first. Now I can't do without them!4. Granite bench tops. (Ok, not exactly a utensil.) Nothing comes close.5. The 'soften butter' setting on the microwave oven so I can bake any time I get the urge without having to worry whether the butter is soft enough.